Will the BF Goodrich g-Force Rivals make you a better driver? Probably not, but they’ll make you feel like a better driver and likely lower your lap times in the process. The Rival’s better longitudinal grip allowed us to get on the throttle sooner, and although our lap times weren’t recorded, we’re sure the difference between the tires was substantial. The Hankooks stuck well until they suddenly didn’t, and the autocross turned into a game of catch with the rear end. When the Rivals lost traction, it was a gradual process. The Rival not only had better lateral grip, but it had better longitudinal grip (under braking), making it an easier tire to drive fast. The final event was a long-course autocross in the BMW E46 M3, and this event really solidified the Rival’s advantages over its closest competitor, the Hankook Ventus R-S3. Though we only had two laps on each tire, the Falken felt to us like it was starting to give up some grip, though we’d need more consecutive laps to be sure. Not only did it provide a higher level of grip, but the Rival was much more progressive when it did break loose. With a front straight that’s nearly a mile long, the circuit allowed us to experience the differences between the tires at high speed, where the Rival immediately presented itself as more confidence-inspiring. Next it was off to drive the Mustang FR500 racer on the full NOLA circuit, comparing the g-Force Rivals to the Falken RT-615K. ![]() The Rivals took the abuse of ham-fisted drivers far better than the competition, too. It didn’t matter, since the Rivals were noticeably better than the Hankooks and significantly better than the Toyos, both in terms of steering response and overall grip. BF Goodrich even stacked the deck in the competition’s favor by having us drive the g-Force Rivals first, before we learned the layout of the course. Next, we hopped into the Subaru WRX STI to autocross the Rivals against the Hankook Ventus R-S3 and the Toyo Proxes R1R. In feel, the Rivals were much closer to the R1 racing tires, except that they were more forgiving at the limit. If performance is all about numbers, here’s what you need to know: we pulled 1.05 g on the g-Force Comp 2 tires, 1.16 g on the g-Force Rivals and 1.2 g on the g-Force R1s. Our job was a thankless one: driving a Mazda MX5 Cup car, a Subaru WRX STI, a Ford Mustang FR500 and an E46 BMW M3, we had to benchmark the g-Force Rival against other tires from Goodrich (including the g-Force Comp 2 and the g-Force R1) and the competition.įirst up was a skidpad test featuring the Mazda MX5 Cup. Testing the BF Goodrich g-Force Rival tire Its blocks and ribs are designed with lateral draft angles, which prevent them from rolling over at high g-loads, maximizing the contact patch and extending tire life.Īll the hype in the world is meaningless unless a manufacturer can back it up with performance, so BF Goodrich invited us to the New Orleans Motorsport Park to play tire test engineer for a day. We won’t quiz you on any of that, but here’s what you need to know: the Rival is designed with a very stiff sidewall for crisp turn-in and exceptional steering response. The Rival sports the brand’s Performance Racing Core (PRC) technology, which incorporates a Dynamic Suspension System (DSS), an Equal Tension Containment System (ETEC) and Extreme Tread Edge (ETE) construction. ![]() ![]() There’s plenty of science behind its design, and BF Goodrich is acronym-happy here. ![]() It’s not a rain tire, and BF Goodrich recommends its g-Force Comp 2 for use in the wet.Īs a tire that you can drive to the track, earn a trophy and then drive home, the g-Force Rival is, well, without rival (forgive us for that). BF Goodrich designed the g-Force Rival to deliver the highest level of dry grip in its street product line, while still delivering reasonable damp weather performance.
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